What we found

We visited Wellington stores to check out the imported furniture market. We found that a lot of what's being sold doesn't have any labelling to tell you where it's made or what it's made from: price is often the only information given.

We also found sales staff weren't well informed about the origins of the products they were selling. That's a problem - because "word of mouth" is pretty much all consumers have to rely on.

"Sustainable" furniture

Several stores we visited claimed to be selling imported furniture made from wood sourced from well-managed or "sustainably" managed forests. But none of the furniture we saw carried a recognised certification label to back up these claims. And without such a label we don't think you can put much store in the claims.

What should you accept as proof you're buying "good" wood? There are about 15 timber certification schemes around the world but standards vary widely. Some certify that timber comes from sustainably managed forests while others simply certify that the timber is legally sourced.

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) runs the most well-known scheme - some say it's also the most rigorous. The FSC is not without its critics but it has won the support of Greenpeace and other environmental groups. Greenpeace's Grant Rosoman believes the scheme's stamp of approval is a guarantee the timber has been legally and responsibly logged.

There's very little imported furniture with the FSC tick - or any other certification label - sold here. One retailer told us they'd never even heard of the FSC. Rosoman says some retailers including The Warehouse and Briscoes sell certified outdoor furniture. But we didn't find any imported indoor furniture with any kind of "green" tick.

"Recycled" furniture

Our shopping expedition turned up a fair amount of imported furniture made from "recycled" timber.

We found ads for a furniture range called "Scotland Recycled Pine". This range was advertised for sale at Dzine Furniture and Hazelwoods stores in the North Island and John's Furniture Warehouse in the South Island. The ads didn't say where the furniture was made and when we visited Hazelwoods' Wellington store there weren't any labels to tell us.

When we asked sales staff, we were told the furniture was made in Vietnam from "recycled Chinese pine". We phoned Hazelwoods managing director Michael Gibbs to check this out. He said "Scotland" and another range called "Hamilton" were manufactured in Vietnam from "predominantly recycled pine" - but new wood, up to 30 percent in any product, was also used.

Nothing to do with Scotland or Hamilton then. We think retailers of these products should make it clear to consumers how much of each item is recycled.

We also found "recycled pine" on sale at Big Save furniture. A staff member told us Big Save's "Outback Furniture" recycled range was manufactured in Vietnam from "New Zealand pine" - which had us puzzled. Big Save's general manager of retail operations, Barry Beaumont, said the staff member made an honest mistake. Beaumont told us the range was made in Vietnam but from "old Russian packing cases".

Early Settler, which has stores in both the North and South Islands, also advertises recycled furniture. We asked about the "Stoney" range promoted in the store's brochure. A staff member at the Wellington store told us it was made from "recycled pine". When we inquired about where it was manufactured, we were told all the furniture that the store sold was imported.

General manager Elisa McLennan says product information is readily available to staff and she's disappointed to learn this information was not used by the staff member we spoke to. She told us the Stoney range was sourced from Vietnam and made from a "combination of recycled and new pine".